Clamp hanger



July 1950 s. J. OTIS 2,516,481

cm? HANGER i iled Feb. 6, 1948 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 E INVENTOR.

BY M lib Aw ATTORNEY S.- J. OTIS CLAMP HANGER July 25, 1950 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Feb. 6, 1948 JNVENTOR. U67,

AT TOR N EY Patented July 25, 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE The present invention relates to clamp hangers for securing to structural beams and the like any of a wide variety of building elements such as utility conduits, furring strips, and the like! More particularly the invention provides an improved device adapted to be quickly and permanently' attached to the lowerportion of afloor joist for securing thereto any of the elements and appendages which are commonly mounted on or between such joists in the erection of buildings.

Among the objects of the invention are" to provide an attaching device for the purpose indicated which will be extremely inexpensive to make and' which will require no-tool or fastening means to mount it in position.

Other objects are concerned with providing a device of the character indicated which can be quickly installed. by inexperienced and unskilled persons and which will remain securely'inst'all'ed until it is intentionally removed;

A related purpose is to provide a hanger which will resist separation from the supporting joist or the like resulting from the load of the object which it supports, i. e., to provide a hanger which will tighten its grip on the joist or the like as the load or pull effected by the hung load increases.

A further object is to provide a clam-ping device of great versatility and a'daptability'which can be used to mount any of a wide variety of conduits and the like in any desired position and location relative to the supporting'joi'sts, i. e;, be low or above the bottom surfaces of the joists, and parallel to or transversely of them.

With the foregoing and otherobjects and ad'- vantages in view, some t which it isibelieved will be apparent to those skilled in the artfroma the acornpanying drawings and the following description, an embodiment of the invention which" has been tested and found to give entirely" satisiact'ory service, and hence is at present preferred, isillustrated by the accompanying drawings, in which Figure'l is a perspective view of a: precast concrete beam or joistwithsa clamp hanger as2contemplated by the present invention afiixed ther to;

Fig. 2 is an end elevational. view of. the: lower portion of such a beam or joist showing one of the clamp hangers in an intermediate" position in the operation of being mounted;

Fig. 3' is a perspective view of: the tonguemember of the hanger;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the fork member of the hanger;

Fig. 5 is an end elevational view of a joist showing' a mounted hanger supporting a pipe in a position close to the under surface of the joist and extending parallel thereto;

Fig: 6: isa side elevational view of a joist showing a mounted hanger'supporting a pipe in a position olose'to' the under surface of the joist and extending transversely thereof;

Fig. '7 is an end elevational' view of a joist showing' a' mounted? hanger Supporting a pipe spaced below the under surface of the joist and extending parallel thereto;

Fig. 8" isa side elevational view of a joist showing'. mounted hanger supporting apipe spaced below the under surface of the joist and extending transversely thereof;

Fig. 9 is an end elevational view of a pair of joists showing a pair of mounted hangers supporting a duct which extends longitudinally through the space between the joists;

Fig. 10 is an end elevaticnal View of a pair of joists supporting a duct in the manner shown by Fig, 9; but at a higher elevation in the space between the joists;

Fig. 11" is a side elevational view of a joist show ing pair of mounted hangers supporting a duct extending transversely of the joist, immediately beneath it;

Fig. 12 is an end elevational view of a pair of joists showing pair of mounted hangers sup" porting a duct which extends parallel to the joist-s, below' their under surfaces; and

Fig. 13 is a view similar to that of Fig. 4 but showing, on a relatively reduced scale, a modified-form of fork member.

Generally speaking, the invention comprises cooperating tongue and fork members each of which has in its upper portion a hook for en'- gagin'g the shoulder or equivalent contour of a flanged beam, and'both of which are shaped in theirlower portions to interfit and latch-together, when the members are hung from" the opposite sides of a beam, that the" composite hanger i'ssecuredin position around the side and bottom urfaces of; the'beam flanges. The lower portions of the hanger. members are conveniently provided with perforations or other contours oir shapes for receiving conventional? fastening means, like bolts, split pins, rivets ori thelike, and these portions may also be provided with projections 'or extensions 'forreceiving the load of theobject to behung.

In:- the drawings, the reference numeral lr design'atesr afloor slab supported by a beam 2', here shown: as? a; conventional type of precast concrete joist having a central web 3 and lower side flanges 4, connected with the Web by inclined shoulders 5, and having side wall 6 and an under surface I.

This type of beam or joist is shown merely by way of illustrating the use of the invention. It forms no part of the invention, and the hanger which constitutes the invention may be used with other and different kinds of beams or joists.

The hanger includes a tongue element 8, shown in Fig. 3, and a fork member 9, shown in Fig. 4. Each of these members is preferably made of strap iron or the equivalent. Both of them are right angularly bent and have upper portions comprising hook elements for engaging the beam flange shoulders 5, and both have right-angularly inturned lower portions for interlocking with each other, as will now be explained.

The tongue member 8 is right-angularly bent in an intermediate area and angularly bent again near its upper end portion to provide the hook In for engaging the beam flange shoulder 5. The lower portion II is disposed horizontally when the intermediate portion I2 which connects it with the hook lfl'i engaged with the vertical side surface 6 of the beam flange 4, and this horizontal portion II has securely welded or otherwise fixed to it a short cross bar l3, the ends of which project as lugs from the top surface of the portion I I. Holes M may be provided at one, two or three points along the portion II.

In the form shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 4-12, the fork member, which is designated 9 in these figures, consist of a pair of principal elements, each having a hook portion I5 and an intermediate portion I 8 similar to the hooks I and intermediate portions I2 of the tongue member 8. The fork member has two right-angularly turned lower portions IT, like the single portion I I of the tongue member but somewhat shorter, and these are connected at their free ends by a cross bar I8 which is spot welded or otherwise secured to the portions Ill and holds them parallel and spaced apart a distance slightly greater than the width of the portion I I of the tongue member 8, so that the two members can be interfitted by moving them from the position shown in Fig. 2 to the final position shown in Fig. 1. Holes I9 may be formed through the overlapping areas of the portions I1 and the cross bar I8.

Assuming that the angles at which the hooks I 0 and I extend from the portions I2 and I6, respectively, are approximately the angles which the beam flange shoulders 5 make with the sides 6 of the flanges I, and assuming that the lengths of the portions I2 and I6 are equal to the height of the sides 6, and assuming also that the sum of the distance between the inner edge of each cross member I3 and I8 and the right angle of the member is approximately equal to or only slightly greater than the width of the under surface I of the beam, it is a very simple matter to snap a tongue member and a fork member together to interlocking relation in a position securely engaged with the beam and with each other, by passing them through the intermediate position shown in Fig. 2 to the final relationship shown in Fig. 1.

In this final position each hook III and I5 is supported by a shoulder 5. The cross bar II has snapped behind the cross bar I8, with the two lying in the same plane, in substantially edge to edge engagement. Thus, lateral displacement or separation of the two members is prevented. The lug-like ends by which the cross bar I3 projects from the sides of the tongue member are supported by the portions 11 of the fork member. The long end of the tongue member, with its hole or pair of holes l4, projects beyond the fork member and the beam, and all the holes with which the lower portions of the members are provided are exposed to receive bolts or other fastenin elements for securing to the hanger any conduit or the like which it is customary to support from joists, a few typical examples of which are illustrated in Figs. 5-12.

Thus, Fig. 5 shows a pipe 20 fastened by a strap 2| which is connected by bolts 22 to two of the holes I4 of the tongue member so that the pipe extends parallel to the beam and close to its under surface.

Fig. 6 shows a similar pipe 23 mounted transversely of a beam by a strap 24 which is bolted to the holes l9 of the fork member 9.

Fig. 7 shows a pipe 25 hung from the projecting end of the tongue member by interposing an angle element 26 between that end and a pipe clamp 21. The angle element 26 is bolted to the endmost opening I4 in the tongue member, and it may be turned and positioned to extend the pipe parallel to the beam as shown in Fig. 7, or transversely thereof, as shown in Fig. 8.

Figs. 9-12 show selected illustrative ways in which larger objects, such as sheet metal air ducts, can be mounted by the present clamp hangers.

Fig. 9 shows a duct 30 extending lengthwise through the space between a pair of adjacent joists. The duct rests at one side on the projecting ends of the tongue members of a spaced series of clamp hangers, and its opposite side edge may similarly rest on tongues projecting from a series of hangers mounted on the adja cent joist or, if the space between the joists is considerably greater than the width of the duct, the space may be bridged by a gusset bracket 3|, here shown as a substantially triangular plate having two flanged sides which are secured respectively to the projecting tongue and to the duct side wall.

Connections between the duct and the hanger tongue or the gusset flange may be made by the use of self-tapping screws 32, as shown in Fig. 9.

If the duct be of different shape from that shown in Fig. 9, and/or if it be desired to position it higher in the space between adjacent joists, a bridge element like that shown at 33 in Fig. 10 may be used. This element is simply a stout strap which is right angularly bent near its end p0rtions and inwardly flanged at its extreme ends as shown at 34 for mounting on a pair of oppositely projecting tongues, and a duct 35 is seated on the horizontally intermediate part of the bridge, to which it may if desired be secured or on which it may be left free.

Fig. 11 shows a duct 36 suspended from a pair of hangers so as to extend transversely of the joist to which these hangers are clamped. The connection is made by bolting to each of the hanger tongues the inturned ends of a strap 31 which encircles the duct.

Fig. 12 shows a large duct 38 extending parallel to a pair of joists, immediately beneath their under surfaces. The connection is made through the medium of an angle element 39 which is bridged between the joists and is bolted at 40 to the oppositely projecting tongues of clamp hangers secured to the two joists. Self-tapping screws 4| may be used to hold the duct onto the angle element.

Other uses of the device will, it is believed, be evident from a consideration of the few typical, illustrative uses which have been explained hereinabove.

Fig. 13 shows, on a relatively reduced scale, a modified form of fork member 9' in which the several parts designated by primed reference numerals are similar to the respective parts designated by corresponding unprimed reference numerals in Fig. 4. The sole difference between the two fork member embodiments is that in the Fig. 13 species the portion ll of either or each of the tines is extended outwardly beyond the cross bar I8 and apertured near its terminal end. This provides a portion 42 projecting beyond the beam flange 4 similar to the projecting end of the tongue portion ll. It will be appreciated that when such a type of fork member is used, the composite clamp hanger provides another or additional load-carrying or connecting means, and it will be understood that this alternate type of fork member may be used with the type of tongue member which the drawings illustrate at 8 or with a tongue member in which the tine l l terminates at the cross bar I3, or at any rate does not project beyond the beam flange.

The invention is not to be regarded as limited to the details of the illustrative embodiments, since these details may be variously modified within the scope of the invention as pointed out by the appended claims. Moreover, it is not indispensable that all features of the invention be used conjointly, since various features may be used to advantage in different combinations and subcombinations, as pointed out by the claims.

I claim:

1. A clamp hanger for attachment to a flanged beam consisting of a tongue member and a fork member both hooked over the flanges at opposite sides of the beam, the fork member having a pair of solid tines extending horizontally in one direction across the under side of the beam and the tongue member having a single solid tine extending in the opposite direction parallel to and between the fork member tines, a cross bar fixed to the fork member tines near their free ends, and a cross bar projecting laterally from the tongue tine and overlying the fork member tines to connect the members to the beam and hold them together.

2. A clamp hanger for attachment to a flanged beam consisting of a tongue member having an upper portion hooked over the flange at one side of the beam, a lower portion comprising a tine extending from said side of the beam horizontally across at least a portion of the under surface thereof, and a lug fixed to and projecting from each opposite side of said tine, and a fork member hanging from the other flange of the beam having a pair of tines wholly underlying and supporting said lugs and having a cross bar adjacent to said lugs and engageable therewith to prevent movement of any of the tines laterally of the beam toward the side thereof from which they extend.

3. A clamp hanger for attachment to a flanged beam consisting of tongue and fork members hooked over the flanges at opposite sides of the beam, the fork member having a pair of tines extending horizontally in one direction across the under side of the beam and the tongue member having a single tine extending in the opposite direction parallel to and between the fork member tines, a cross bar fixed to the fork member tines near their free ends, and lugs projecting laterally from the tongue tine and overlying the fork member tines to connect the members to the beam and hold them together.

4. A clamp hanger as claimed in claim 3, in which the tongue member tine is longer than the fork member tines and projects outwardly beyond the edge of the flange on which the fork member is hooked.

5. A clamp hanger as claimed in claim 3, in which the tines are provided with holes to receive bolts or the like for securing conduit elements or the like to the hanger to be suspended.

6. A clamp hanger as claimed in claim 3, in which the tongue member tine is longer than the fork member tines and projects outwardly beyond the edge of the flange on which the fork member is hooked and is provided with a hole in its projecting portion to receive a bolt or the like for securing a conduit element or the like to the hanger to be suspended.

7. Means for hanging conduits, and the like from a structural beam having side flanges comprising a member having at one end a hook engageable over one of the beam flanges and having at its other end a fiat tongue extending forwardly across the bottom surface of the beam and provided with an opening for a bolt or the like and having lateral projections, in combination with means for holding said member in place on the beam comprising a member having at one end a pair of spaced parallel hooks engageable over the other flange of the beam and having at its other end a pair of flat tongues lying on opposite sides of the first named tongue, below said proections, and connected by a cross bar disposed behind and engaged with the projections whereby the first named tongue is supported and secured to the beam.

8. A clamp hanger as claimed in claim 2, in which at least one of said tones extend to a free end portion beyond said lugs and cross bar.

9. A clamp hanger as claimed in claim 2, in which the tine of the tongue member extends to a free end portion beyond said lugs and cross bar.

10. A clamp hanger as claimed in claim 2, in which a tine of the forkmember extends to a free end portion beyond said lugs and cross bar.

11. A clamp hanger as claimed in claim 2, in which both tines of the fork member extend to free end portions beyond said lugs and cross bar.

STANLEY J. OTIS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,159,039 Johnson Nov. 2, 1915 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 366,176 Great Britain of 193;, 

